The Alpha's Heir Forbidden Mate

Before the bond

(Kiara)

I spent the rest of the morning trying to convince myself nothing had changed. I finished the laundry, carried fresh linens into the pack house, and helped prepare lunch. Every task was familiar, but my mind refused to stay on any of them. Cassian Corven was my mate.

Nyra had been pleased with herself since we left him. She kept reminding me that she'd known something was different before either of us understood it. I tried ignoring her while I folded another sheet. It didn't work.

'You should be happy,' Nyra said. 'We found our mate.' She didn't understand why I was afraid.

'I am happy.' I placed the sheet with the others. 'That's what scares me.' Wanting Cassian had always been dangerous.

For years, I'd known exactly what my life was. I was the orphan Lucan allowed to remain in Blackridge after Silvercrest fell. I worked for the pack, followed orders, and stayed away from anything that wasn't meant for me. Cassian had always been one of those things.

Now fate had decided otherwise. Nyra accepted it without question, but I couldn't. A mate bond didn't erase thirteen years of being reminded where I belonged. It didn't make me someone Lucan would accept beside his son.

I carried the linens toward one of the storage rooms. Two servants passed me while discussing the visiting families from the night before. Selene's name came up, followed by Cassian's. I continued walking without showing I was listening.

One of them wondered whether Lucan planned to arrange something between them. The thought bothered me even though Cassian had already told me he didn't want Selene. Yesterday, I would have told myself his future had nothing to do with me. Today, I couldn't do that anymore.

'He's our mate,' Nyra reminded me. 'Selene doesn't change that.' She sounded certain.

'Lucan can change everything,' I answered. 'You know that.' I reached the storage room and put the linens away.

When I stepped outside again, Cassian was waiting near the end of the passage. I stopped when I saw him. The bond reacted before I could control myself, pulling my attention toward him. Judging by his expression, Ronan had noticed me too.

"Are you avoiding me?" Cassian asked. He stayed where he was instead of coming closer. "Because you've become very good at disappearing whenever I'm around." There was amusement in his voice.

"I'm working." I looked toward the kitchen entrance. "Some of us don't get to stand around waiting for people."

"I've been looking for you for twenty minutes." Cassian came closer. "I thought maybe you regretted what happened this morning." His expression became serious.

"I don't regret it." I answered before he could believe otherwise. "I just don't know what I'm supposed to do with it." That was the truth.

Cassian looked around before opening the door to an empty sitting room. I hesitated, but he stepped inside and left enough space for me to decide whether to follow. I entered and closed the door behind me. Being alone with him felt different now that I knew what he was to me.

"You don't have to do anything yet." Cassian remained several steps away. "We said we'd keep it between us." He wasn't pushing me.

"That's not what I mean." I looked at him. "Yesterday your father told me you're going to need a Luna suitable for Blackridge." Those words hadn't left me.

"And now you think you aren't suitable." Cassian studied my face. "Because he spent years making you believe you're beneath everyone here." He understood more than I'd expected.

"I'm a servant, Cassian." I hated saying it to him. "You're going to be Alpha." No mate bond could make those facts disappear.

"You're Kiara." Cassian's answer came immediately. "You've always been Kiara to me." He moved one step closer.

"That isn't enough for your father." I shook my head. "You know it isn't." Lucan had made that clear.

"I'm not talking about my father." Cassian kept his eyes on me. "I'm talking about me." He waited until I looked at him again.

I didn't know why those words affected me so much. Maybe because almost every decision about my life had belonged to someone else since I was five. Lucan decided I would stay in Blackridge. Maris decided what work I did and how I was treated.

Now fate had made another decision for me. It had tied me to Cassian without asking whether either of us wanted it. The difference was that Cassian looked happy about it. I still couldn't understand why.

"What if this bond is the only reason you feel this way now?" I asked. The question had been bothering me since that morning. "What if Ronan wants Nyra and you're confusing that with wanting me?"

Cassian stared at me as if I'd said something ridiculous. "Kiara, I told you I missed you before we knew." He came closer. "I thought about you every day while I was gone."

I remembered him saying those words while carrying my basket. That had happened before Nyra recognized Ronan. Before either of us knew fate had connected us. My chest filled with an emotion I didn't know what to do with.

"I've wanted to be around you for years." Cassian stopped in front of me. "I kept telling myself it was because we grew up together." His eyes stayed on mine.

I couldn't move. This wasn't the mate bond speaking for him. He was telling me something he'd apparently been hiding from himself. Part of me had done the same thing.

"You never said anything." I didn't know what else to say. "Not like this." My voice came out quieter than I intended.

"Neither did you." Cassian smiled. "But I don't think I'm the only one who was pretending." He waited for me to deny it.

I couldn't. I'd spent years noticing when he entered a room and missing him whenever he left Blackridge. Seeing Selene beside him had bothered me before I knew he was my mate. Nyra didn't need to remind me of that.

"I was afraid to want you." I finally admitted it. "I still am." Saying it aloud made me feel exposed.

Cassian reached for my hand but stopped before touching me. "Can I?" he asked. He waited for my answer.

I placed my hand in his. The bond responded immediately, and Nyra moved closer inside me. Cassian smiled as his fingers closed around mine. This time, I didn't pull away.

"My father can have whatever opinion he wants." Cassian looked at our hands before meeting my eyes again. "But don't ever believe the bond made me want you." His expression left no room for doubt.

I wanted to believe him. More than that, I realized I already did. The frightening part wasn't wondering whether Cassian wanted me. It was knowing that I wanted him too.

Footsteps passed outside the room, and I remembered where we were. I released his hand and moved toward the door. Our secret already felt harder to hide. We couldn't afford to become careless.

"I should get back." I opened the door. "Maris will start looking for me soon." I glanced back at him.

Cassian nodded and let me leave without trying to stop me. That small choice meant more than any promise he could have made. He wanted me, but he still respected the limits I needed. I carried that thought with me as I returned to work.

Nyra remained close as I walked away. I had spent years believing Cassian belonged to a life I could never touch. Now I knew he had wanted me before fate gave either of us a name for it. The question was how long we could keep Lucan from discovering the truth.